Rewards ‘not a solution’ to Telkom woes

Telkom workers’ five-week wage dispute has been disrupting its operations.

A hefty reward of up to R1 million, recently announced by Telkom for information that would put copper and cable thieves behind bars, will not address the incessant network failures in Zululand, Zululand Observer reports.

This is according to Business Against Crime Zululand manager Dave Whittaker, who said the telecommunications giant should focus on replacing its cables and poles in this region and ending the workers’ five-week wage dispute that had been disrupting its operations.

“Telkom’s copper cables must be replaced with fibre optic cables, especially in Alton and Empangeni. These cables are stolen for illegal Eskom connections,” said Whittaker.

“Furthermore, their wooden poles, often pinched for other uses, should be replaced with concrete structures.